


You Saved Me. Now Let Me Save You.

by sharkyclarky



Series: Canon-divergence 5B [1]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe, Angst, F/M, Romance, Tragedy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-21
Updated: 2016-03-07
Packaged: 2018-05-15 08:13:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,567
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5778118
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sharkyclarky/pseuds/sharkyclarky
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>CaptainSwan AU where Emma goes through with her plan in Swan Song without Killian's interference. Let's see how Killian fares when he loses yet another woman he loves to benefit the Crocodile. </p><p>"You told me once that you'd go to the end of the world for your princess." - "Aye. And I Will. I'm not going to lose her again."<br/>Also posted on FF.Net<br/>The sequel has been posted too!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So I've been working on a few OUAT fanfictions at the moment, two of them being multi-chapters (An AU Where Emma was in the enchanted Forest her whole life and a story based around my own version of Captain Jack Sparrow) So please let me know what you think about this story!

The streets of Storybrooke were all but silent that night.

Not that it wasn't to be expected. Night had fallen, Killian's plan had been set into action. The Dark One's were here, and one by one they were trading their souls for those of Emma's family. All because she had lied to save them.

Perhaps Killian was right in his words. _You're so afraid of losing the people that you love that you push them away._ And now she was losing them, all of them, everyone who she'd ever loved was going to suffer the fate worse than death. _That's why you'll always be an orphan_. Her time with her parents had already been short lived, she wasn't about to let them sacrifice anything for her again. Now it was time to follow her own harsh advice. Now it was time to step up and do what needed to be done.

Bargaining with Gold had been simple, far too easy for the old Dark One to be capable of, even with Neal coercing him to do the right thing. But now was not the time to dwell on it. Emma had far bigger issues now. The mistakes she'd made needed to be fixed and she knew there was only one way to do that. She was going to sacrifice herself for her family, as she had done before and sadly never would again.

 _You're a brave Woman Emma Swan_.

She didn't feel very brave, she could barely feel anything. So she did what she did best.

She ran, her legs carrying her to where she know she needed to be. The portal to the underworld. The pond in the middle of the park with the small wooden bench she'd sat on so many times. The others were already there when Emma arrived, standing huddled not far from the water's edge. Her mother, father, Henry, Regina, Robin, even Gold, all of them paying the price for her mistake, and surrounding them – the Dark Ones.

"So this is really it?" Emma heard Henry ask, looking to Regina with a fear that broke Emma's already broken heart. And then, the voice that followed froze Emma in her steps as Killian moved through the cluster of shrouded figures, his hair falling over his forehead, the ice in his usually bright eyes causing her heart to falter.

She'd finally done it, finally pushed the captain to his breaking point and by gods had he broken. Shattered like a crystal glass, all the pieces shoved clumsily back together. The exterior may look the same but inside he was cracked.

"I'm afraid it is, lad." He said snidely, the smirk that used to be so alluring now tainting is face. Regina wrapped her arms around Henry's shoulders, pulling him back, away from the pirate he could one day have considered a father. Another future that Emma had effectively destroyed.

"No, it's not." Emma said, breaking through the crowd, standing between Killian and her loved ones as though she could fend off the entire Dark One army alone. If anyone noticed how her legs quivered, they said nothing. "Mom, Dad, Henry. I'm so sorry." She said, looking at the sympathy on their faces, the kindled fear in their eyes. At least she knew that they'd gotten her note before coming here.

"Emma, please-" Snow began, but Emma cut her off with a quick hug, holding her mother tightly as though she could ground herself. She felt her father as he joined the embrace, his arm around Snow's back, his free hand holding the back of Emma's neck as it always did. Emma remembered the days his fingers would brush against her golden hair so much like his own, now just another long lost memory.

Henry was there too, gripping onto Emma as much as he could as she and Snow encompassed him into the hug. Emma's words of reassurance filled the air between them, each of them muttering apologies and affirmations into the small space. Any hopes Emma had of withholding her tears were already gone as they fell down her now pale cheeks in thick, hot splashes.

"You can't just sit back and watch another family be destroyed to get your revenge." Emma heard Regina say, pulling away so she could turn to see the conversation unfolding. Regina was facing Killian, a determined and slightly infuriated expression on her face as she tried to convince the pirate the only way she really knew how to – hostility. Evidently it wasn't working.

"What makes you think I can't?" Killian sneered at her.

"Because I won't let you." Emma was beside Regina, letting her parents comfort Henry as she faced the monster she'd created. His face wavered, but only for a second, before his eyes glazed over once more and Killian Emma thought she saw was gone once again. She'd said it herself - the man she had loved died back in Camelot. This monster simply wore his face to taunt her.

"There's nothing you can do to stop this." It wasn't Killian that spoke, but Nimue, her greenish skin shimmering slightly in the moonlight beneath her cloaked hood, her eyes cold and calculating as she looked over Emma with obvious distaste. Emma supposed it must be a small victory to have been such a poor and disappointing Dark One.

"I'd rather die than let you do this." Emma bit back, Nimue's cold smile gracing what was once undoubtedly a pretty face.

"I might not be able to kill you," she said with a chilling smile, moving out slightly from behind Killian, standing just a step behind him. "But I can stop you from interfering." Before Emma could do anything, Nimue raised her hand and a crushing feeling ensnared her throat, forcing the air from her lungs with searing effort.

The pain was unbearable, it felt like her windpipe was being squashed by a giant's fist, a feeling that she was surprisingly familiar with after her run in with Anton. Spots appeared at the side of her vision, blinding white through the sea of darkness before her. Tears tracked down her cheeks, but she barely noticed. All she could think was how she had already failed, she'd not even started to enact her heroic plan and she had been thwarted.

"That's enough." A voice said and Emma felt the grip falter, her legs buckling slightly from the pain as she stumbled forward. She caught herself before she landed on her knees, succeeding in standing up straight once again. He'd let her go, he was fighting it. The concern on his face was enough to confirm that.

If Emma was looking for any kind of a sign, this was it. With a flourish of her hand and a puff of black smoke, she held the cool hilt of Excalibur in her hands, her fingers tightening harshly around it.

"And what do you think you're doing." Nimue asked as Emma advanced forward slightly. Killian spun on his heel, his face pained when he saw Emma before him, sword in hand, tears down her face. He was smarter now in the ways of magic, he knew what she was about to do, and he didn't like it.

"Paying for my mistake." She replied, clenching her jaw, the determined look of the saviour she once was back in her eyes.

"Swan-" Killian began, taking a hesitant step towards her, reaching his hand for the sword, but Emma had already held the blade up, her name glinting off the silver surface in the moonlight. Shutting her eyes, Emma took a deep breath, feeling the weight building in her chest. Her face was illuminated red as the sword in her grasp glowed, the thick, swirling tendrils of darkness gliding rapidly through the air, sinking into the sword. Emma's heart thundered in her ears, deafening her to the outrages cries of the Dark Ones, but not to him. "Emma, Love, you can't do this."

"We both know there's no other way," Emma said shakily, her hand and arm trembling from the power forcing to be free from the sword. "But we have to hurry. The darkness won't stay trapped in Excalibur much longer." She groaned slightly, the exertion from holding the blade taking its toll, her face scrunching in determination.

"Emma you don't know what you're asking." Killian pressed, the fear flashing through his eyes enough for her to force out a weak, trembling smile. "It should be me. Your family needs you, if anyone deserves to go to the underworld it's me." He said, reaching his arms out slightly, giving Emma a clear shot at his chest with the sword, one Killian really wished she'd take. He'd lost one love, he couldn't lose another. But this was his swan, he should have known she wouldn't.

"I don't want to lose you." She choked out with a pitifully pained laugh.

"And I don't want to lose you." Killian countered, his jaw twitching, indicating again for her to end this now and let him be the sacrifice.

"You spent all your time in Camelot trying to save me from the darkness and I failed to do the same." Emma reasoned, her grip on Excalibur's hilt faltering from the tremors. "But I'm making up for it now, let me save you."

Killian was taken aback, his shoulders sagging at the sight of the woman before him – the woman he loved. She was as strong as ever, even in her current state, with the fear in her green eyes and tears on her cheeks. She was still his swan, standing firm in the face of death.

"I won't do it." He said bluntly, stepping away from her. "I won't kill you." Perhaps without him she couldn't do this, maybe it had to be the Dark Ones, perhaps she'd have no choice but to sacrifice him instead. But that hope died quicker than a mayfly.

"I didn't expect you to." Emma replied softly with a watery smile, titling her head slightly the way she does when she's sympathising. Even as she teetered on the edge of her life she couldn't help but put others before herself. "Regina," she said, turning abruptly towards the other woman, pleading in her eyes. "Are you willing to keep the promise you made in Camelot?"

Regina didn't speak, just nodded slightly, her grip on Henry tightening as he watched the exchange with frightened eyes.

"Then do it." Emma said, turning towards her fully, not being able to bare the pain she'd see on Killian's face as she held the sword for Regina to take. "Destroy me."

"Emma, no!" Snow move forward, grasping her daughters free arm, looking at her imploringly, begging her.

"I'm so sorry, Mom," Emma said, thrusting the sword closer to Regina, her entire body sagging when the trembling weight left her. "I love you. You're all the family I could have asked for. Both of you." She finished, looking between the two faces of the parents she could never have dreamed she'd find. Yet here she was, giving her life so that they might live. "Henry," Emma said before feeling her son plough into her, his arms around her waist as she gripped him tightly, kissing his head and smoothing out his hair, such a maternal touch that it made her ache. She needed more time with her son. Time to watch him grow into a great man, to comfort him through his first heartbreak and shine with pride when he became the great hero she knew he would be. "I love you, Henry." She said, choking her words out past her sobs.

"Swan," The brokenness in his voice was enough to pull her back into the now. She didn't even have the time to comfort her own son when he needed her. Releasing him, Emma pulled back, her hands lingering on his shoulders as she brushed his cheek slightly.

Turning to look into Killian's eyes Emma was filled with regret. She couldn't even bare to look at the man she loved through the shame of what she'd done, of what she was about to do. She didn't want to speak, instead moving briskly into his arms, pressing her lips quickly to his, feeling his hand coming to rest on her cheek.

"I love you." Emma breathed as their lips parted, her forehead resting against his own, her eyes closed to the fear in Killian's eyes. Before he had the chance to reply, Emma pulled away, turning towards where Regina was straining against the swords power. "Looks like you're finally going to be rid of me," Emma said with a forced laugh, watching as Regina struggled with the sword, her own face twisting into a half smile. They didn't have long now, another minute at best before the darkness was free once again. "Thank you, Regina." Emma said before tilting her head back, unable to watch the tears on her loved ones faces, the pain in their eyes, so instead she looked to the stars. They would guide her, just liek they did for her pirate. Sos he did th eonly thing she thought she could. She searched for the first star on the right. And straight on 'till morning.

It was only a few moments before Regina thrust the sword forward, but to Emma it felt like a lifetime before Excalibur was forced through her abdomen, the blade tearing through leather, skin and muscle alike. As much as she fought against it, a cry fell from her lips as her eyes clenched shut, tears spilling over the sides as she tried to fight through the pain. But she could feel the cool metal inside her, the gagged blade rubbing against her flesh where Regina's hands shook from the strain, but as she pulled the blade back out with a sickening pull her hands were as steady as they ever were. Death never did effect the queen as much as others.

Dizziness settled in her mind as her hands came to her stomach, feeling the blood as it poured from the wound. She caught only glimpses of her family's faces, their horror and grief at the sight before them, then Excalibur as it crumbled into dust and she watched Regina rush towards Henry, holding him back from his dying mother. Emma supposed she should be grateful for that. She didn't want Henry to have seen this, she could only hope Robin had the sense to shield his eyes.

And then she fell.

The pain was like nothing she could have imagined, the darkness raging through her veins like a fire before it fizzled and died, Excalibur cutting each of her immortal ties like they were thread, slicing through them one by one.

She felt as Killian's arms caught her, cradling her like the child she was beginning to feel like, wounded and afraid in the face of death, but she couldn't go out like that. So she bit back the sobs and steadied her trembling limbs as she looked up at the face above her. Her resolve almost shattered at the pain in his eyes, the shock and the horror that fell out with each of the tears that splashed against her cheeks.

"Killian," she breathed, a half-hearted smile gracing her features as she tried to reassure him. "It's okay," she said weakly, watching as he shook his head in response. "Go and be a hero. Find your happy ending."

"You are my happy ending. What of our future?" He choked out with a half-hearted smile, mimicking the very words they'd spoken mere weeks ago, his jaw clenching as he fought hard against sobs of his own. It was enough to make Emma stronger to know how much he was fighting to reassure her.

"Our future is now." She breathed out, countering his words, but she saw the conflict in his eyes. "Just – just look after Henry. Be a father to him. He's going to need one"

"The lad deserves better than me." Kilian replied, but Emma said nothing, just smiled up at him. With great effort she lifted her arm, Kilian clearly ready to protest, to tell her to save her strength, before her fingers graced against his jaw, the feeling setting his skin alight. It was a soft touch, nothing but her fingertips against his scruff, but it was enough.

Taking her hand, he held it against his cheek, watching her soft smile as her green eyes fluttered closed slightly. Kilian couldn't help it, he shook her, knowing it would do no good.

If only she'd stayed the same, clad in black leather, pale skin and her white hair tied back, he may have held himself together a little longer. But that's not who Kilian caught in his arms. Instead he had been faced with the familiar red leather jacket and long golden curls that he'd fallen in love with. Whatever thread he'd been hanging by snapped as he watched the smile grace her lips. 'I love you' she whispered, her fingers trailing his jaw line before her hand fell limp across her stomach.

Killian didn't let her go for one second, even when the coroners came to take her body away. He held her, cradled in his arms. Henry came over at some point, having broken away from Regina to be by his mother's side. The boy was still crying but his sobs had ebbed away as he held his mother's hand between both of his own, kneeling by her body. Killian decided then that Henry was a stronger man than he'd ever be. Henry had accepted his mother's fate and now mourned and grieved as the rest of them no doubt would. But Kilian was still holding out hope, still kissing her forehead and expecting her to smile, still shaking her body with the hope that her eyes would flutter open and she'd smile up at him tiredly, blinking sleep from her eyes.

Even as he watched the men lift her body onto the gurney and begin to cover her from prying eyes he didn't let go, but kept his grip on her hand, feeling the cold skin against his own and pretending it was simply because she'd been out in the cold for too long. He thought of the day he'd carried her from the ice cave, she'd been cold then, but not this cold. This time her body was lifeless, no chattering teeth or stuttering breaths, there was a chill to her skin that ran through his veins and settled in his heart, hardening it. It took the strength of both Robin and David to pull him from Emma's body, her own father having accepted the situation before he had.

* * *

 

And yet, despite all he'd done, it was still only a few hours later that Killian found himself in the warmth of Mary-Margret's loft, a fire burning in the hearth and the sound of a whistling kettle over the oven as Robin and Regina stood beside it waiting with Roland between them. David sat with his wife, son and grandson on the sofa, each of them staring at the flames like they could burn the image of their daughter and mother's death from their eyes. Despite the warmth, Killian could feel nothing but the chill of her fingertips as they slipped from his hand.

"Hook," A voice said but he barely registered it, too wrapped up in the grasp of his own guilt, feeling the painfully familiar ache settling in his stomach. He had loved Milah so much, and yet he felt that the wound left from Emma's passing would not be so simply healed. It had been Emma that had calmed his revenge, who'd showed him how to care for someone other than himself once again. His true love. How could he ever hope of finding such a thing as Emma Swan ever again? "Hook." The voice pressed and Killian looked up, his eyes meeting the familiar green that he'd fallen in love with, but they were in the wrong face, they were less guarded, showing more pain than Killian could bear. "She left this for us to find." Snow said, tears welling up once more in her eyes as she held up the paper with the familiar handwriting scrawled across it. "I think she'd want you to read it." She pressed and Killian nodded, taking the paper and holding it in his grasp.

"Thank you." Killian said with a nod, breaking eye contact with the woman, his guilt riled up enough.

"There was another thing," Snow pressed, clearly trying to catch Killian's attention again. Looking at her, Killian watched as she fumbled slightly, reaching into the pocket of her coat – clearly the chill was not only in Killian's bones – and pulling out a chain. His breath caught at the sight at what hung on the end of it. His ring – Liam's ring.

With fumbling fingers, he reached out a took the chain from Snow's hand, his fingers brushing against hers for a second before he turned away once more, unable to watch the face of a mother in mourning. Snow retreated to the sofa, holding her son in her arms, her tears falling into his thin, downy hair.

Unable to bear the eyes on him from every member in the room, even when they weren't looking at him, Killian retreated to the only place he felt he could to be alone. Unfortunately that place happened to be Emma's bedroom. And so he did the only thing he felt he could, sit on Emma's bed and read the letter she'd so wanted her family to see.

Delicately, he unfolded the paper, drinking in the handwriting and imagining her writing it. He could see how her hand trembled as she wrote, clearly having been alone when she wrote it, tear marks staining the paper, disfiguring letters to almost unrecognition.

_I'm sorry but I can't let you all pay for my mistake._

_Deep down, you know I'm right. So please, promise me you'll move on and find happiness and help Henry grow into the best man he can be._

_That's enough for me. To die knowing the family I always wanted is safe._

_I'll love you all forever._

Killian couldn't help it, he closed his fist, crunching the letter in his hand as he clenched his eyes shut. 'Pay for my mistake'. Him, he was her mistake. And she'd payed the price of that mistake when it should have been him. She should be here now, sitting with her family, drinking cocoa and telling stories. She should be here to watch Henry grow, to help him be the best man he could be. No one should have to move on, they should have their happiness here with them and Killian should be six foot underground by now. He'd made the mistake, not her.

Looking around he saw everything that could ever remind him of her. Her wardrobe, where hung her array of different coloured leather jackets, his favourite red one missing. Her desk, disorganised and messy, covered in papers and a book propped open with its spine bent. His eyes wandered to her bedside table, the lamp that hadn't been on in weeks, the old mug still to be cleaned away and finally, hanging from the lamp was her necklace, the keychain Neal had given her all those years ago and she'd not worn since. The simple round pendant, engraved with a single swan.

Lying back, he let himself be wrapped in her scent, feeling the softness of her mattress beneath him, the cool metal of the pendant pressed into his palm. He'd slept here before, many times. They'd fallen asleep wrapped in each other's arms and woken up the same way and knowing that they'd never do so again was enough to make his blood curdle.

The last time he'd been up here was the night she'd sacrificed herself to the darkness. He could see her now, running up the stairs with delight in her eyes, his name falling from her lips as she crashed into him, both of them toppling onto the bed. He'd said then he was a survivor, and now more than anything he'd wished that he'd been wrong. Just this once, Killian Jones didn't want to survive. He'd have given it all for her, gone to the ends of the earth. Instead he was left behind to conserve her memory, protect her son and make sure she was remembered for the hero she was.

He'd have been content with that and letting his eyes fall shut he allowed himself to bask in it for just a moment, to remember her in the fullest, from her eyes to her golden curls, the light in her smile and the bite in her words. That would have been enough, but with his guard down and his mind wandering, the whispers snuck in. They bit at his thoughts, nipping and tugging at the deepest recesses of his mind. The sound was all too familiar to him and his eyes flew open.

Shoving the letter into his pocket and clumsily attaching her pendant around his neck, Killian left her room, storming down the stairs and leaving the loft without so much as an explanation. He doubted anyone would notice, and if they did he doubted he'd be missed, they probably just wanted to be rid of him now.

Following the sound, he found himself in the last place he wanted to be, alone in the cold outside of Mr Gold's Pawn shop. He didn't bother knocking, he doubted Gold was in there anyway and the closed sign hung in the window said enough. Twisting the knob, Killian found the door to be locked. Bracing himself slightly, the whispers in his head becoming deafening, Killian punched his hook against the glass, breaking through the window panel nearest to the doors lock. Gold would know he was here, he'd sense an intruder with or without magic.

Killian was hardly a stranger to breaking and entering, so it was no wonder that Gold sounded far from surprised at seeing the pirate standing in his shop, hand and hook braced against the glass case, his head hung low in the darkness.

"You see, this isn't the library, or Granny's or some bus station, Captain." Gold began, flicking on the lights and limping on his cane as he walked. "This is my shop, and unless the sign say's open, you're not invited." He said, walking past the pirate captain and standing behind the glass case like he would with a customer.

"I think I was invited. I can hear whispers." Killian muttered, trying hard not to rise to Gold's challenge, biting his tongue from snapping. "It's that infernal dagger. It's calling to me."

"You seem tired, you've had a long day. You must be imagining things." Gold mocked, picking an item off the case's surface and moving to place it on a shelf behind him, obviously avoiding Killian's silent accusations.

"No, I'm not." Killian spat, looking up quickly as the old man kept his back to him. "It's here isn't it? You have the bloody thing, don't you?"

"Yes, I do." Gold said with a smirk, pulling what Killian could only assume was the dagger wrapped in cloth from inside the bottom of the case. He didn't know what he'd expected, but The Crocodile's names engraved in the metal wasn't top of the list. Maybe item number three.

"You're the bloody Dark One again!" Killian all but growled, looking ready to jump over the counter and throttle the old man that stood behind it.

"Had hoped to keep that secret." He replied, his victorious smile still plastered over his smug face. How Killian wished he could smack it off. He still might if the mood so took him. "I wasn't expecting you to hear it. But most ex-Dark Ones are dead."

"How is this even possible?" Killian was too exhausted to seem surprised or shocked, but even as he listened to Gold's pathetic story the anger was boiling in his blood, his thirst for vengeance burning in the pit of his stomach. That man had taken far too much from him.

"She had no idea." Gold finished, and Killian slammed his hand against the glass case, shaking all the items inside with a tinkling sound.

"Emma sacrificed herself and you took that from her!" he half shouted, a fire burning inside that he'd worked so hard to extinguish. But that had been for Emma's sake, and now she was gone. Why quench the one thing that might keep him going? Killian didn't think then, only lunged forward, reaching over the glass case as though to grab Gold's collar, to pull him close enough that he could punch him swiftly in the jaw. But his hand froze with a flick of Gold's wrist, and Rumpelstiltskin regarded him with that familiar look of smug triumph.

"Do you honestly think you can hurt me? I have the combined power of every Dark One who ever lived." He gloated before leaning forward, his face barely a ruler's length away from the captains. "Including your twoo love." He mocked and Killian found his teeth grinding as he glared at the man before him, the man who had taken everything from him.

"You found a loophole and betrayed us all – again." Killian ground out, seconds from spitting in the man's face, especially when he smiled across the case at the powerless man before him.

"It's what I do. It's the man I am." Gold said and sounded almost proud of that fact.

"Well then, Dark One," Killian all but spat, "Now that you have your power back, you're going to do something for me." This blackmail had worked before, and had the situation been any different Killian was sure it wouldn't work again. But Emma was gone, she was dead and without this she may never come back, and to know that Gold played a part in this was something Belle would surely never forgive.

"Because, this is now the third time I have lost the woman I love to you. You've gotten away in the past but not again. Powers or not, I'm betting I can still get to Belle and tell her everything before you can kill me." Killian challenged, and he saw the way Rumpelstiltskin's eyes darkened. He knew Captain Hook was a force to be reckoned with. Anyone who spent three-hundred years seeking revenge was not someone to be underestimated.

"Don't test me." Gold muttered, clearly as a threat, his voice dropping an octave as he glared haltingly at the Captain before him.

" _Don't test me!_ " Killian almost shouted, slamming his hand once more on the glass case and leaning his face towards Gold's, a sneer firmly on his face. "Do you really want to take that chance? That she will once again know the kind of man you really are?" consideration seemed to flash through Gold's features before they soured, looking up at the captain with one of the most forced smiles that Killian had seen in his long, long life.

"What do you want, Captain?"

* * *

 

"You're going to hell?" Snow asked as they all stood around her kitchen island, all eyes on Killian as he began to explain his plan. Most looked sceptical, but he could see the hope behind their still teary eyes.

"The underworld." Killian corrected, scratching behind his ear slightly.

"That's quite a distinction." David said as sarcastically as he could muster in his emotionally drained state. Like his wife, his eyes were rimmed red, the marks of old tears still noticeable on his cheeks, the tiredness clear in his eyes.

"I am getting her back." Killian announced, his finger pointed down on the table, looking across at all the faces that challenged him. "The Crocodile tricked her. Everything she sacrificed was based on a bloody lie!"

"Hook," David said, levelling Killian with a sympathetic gaze. The two had become unlikely allies, friends almost, and without David's constant threats to shoot him in the face Killian had come to quite like the brave prince. He'd be in repentance for what he'd almost done for a long time. "We love Emma, we do. And we'd give anything to have our daughter back with us," he said, reaching out and taking Snow's hand as she began sniffling once again. "But you know how this works. It's a one for one trade. To get her back someone else will have to die." David took a deep breath, rubbing his closed eyes with his thumb and forefinger, clearly at war with himself. "Emma would never forgive us that."

A knowing look passed through the group. Everyone there – even Regina – owed their life to Emma and each of them would probably give up their lives to save her. But Emma would never forgive herself should that happen.

"You can't give into the darkness again, Killian." Snow reasoned.

"We all saw how that worked out." Regina mumbled, but Killian heard it, her words hitting home like a punch to the gut. Clearly Robin and David heard too for both of them shot Regina a slightly scolding look, David's considerably more sour that Robins.

"I'm not giving into anything but love. I am going to do this, and I'm going to do this right." He said, clenching his hand into a fist, levelling Regina with the strongest mask he could. No doubt Snow could see through his brave and strong façade, Emma always could. "Maybe I can take a page from your book," he said indicating Snow and Charming who blinked in confusion. "You two share a heart, so could Emma and I." He reasoned. There was a look of understanding then between the royals and the pirate, the faces of those who'd almost lost the one they loved most.

"It could work." Regina said, nodding slightly as she looked into thin air, clearly thinking over the possibilities and chanced consequences of this plan.

"And if not, I'll trade my life for hers." Killian said boldly, eyes snapping to meet his, Snow covering her gasp with her hand.

"You can't, she'd never-"

"She should never have done what she did." Killian half spat, trying hard not to look at those around him, the image of Emma with her back to him too plain and fresh in his mind. He could see as her body reacted to the blade, watched as it pierced through her back before being withdrawn. "I caused this. I was weak and I gave into the darkness. And now I'm going to make up for it by being strong."

"You once told me you'd go to the ends of the earth for your princess." David said, recalling their time many years ago, when David was a new prince and Killian was just trying to find the woman he loved.

"Aye. And I will. I'm never losing her again." Killian said with such conviction that no one dared argue.

Everyone fell silent then, clearly none of them wanted to question the decision of the pirate captain. Nothing they could say would ever persuade him anyway. He'd die a thousand times over for his swan.

"Forgive me if I'm missing the obvious," Robin said awkwardly, clearly not having wanted to break through the tense silence. "But, um, how does one get to the underworld?"

"That's where the crocodile comes in."

* * *

 

"Do it, Dark One," Killian half growled as they stood, once again beside the pond in the park. He faced the water and Gold, not permitting himself to look at where it happened, where Emma had taken her final breaths. The thought alone made his stomach turn. They all stood behind him. Snow and Charming with their hands held together, hope in their eyes as they gave Killian their nod of approval. Regina stood beside Robin, her arms wrapped securely around Henry's shoulders. Killian had tried to be responsible, tried to tell him to stay behind, but the lad had been awfully persistent and proudly reminded them how at ten years old he managed to steal a credit card, track down his real mother and find her in Boston before bringing her to Storybrooke all for the sake of breaking a curse. They'd all be mad in thinking he wouldn't join them in trying to save his mother's life. Besides, he could always find another way. He was Emma, Regina and Neal's son after all.

"Are you sure about this?" Rumpelstiltskin asked, feigning chivalry as he dragged the blade along his palm, holding his hand palm us and letting the blood pool in the cup of his hand. Killian felt that anger again, standing so close to where he'd lost her, remembering how the Crocodile had witnessed the entire event unfold silently.

"Just bloody do it." Killian ground out, his jaw clenching as he suppressed the urge to push the Dark One into the pond and hold him below the surface until the bubbles ceased.

Rolling his eyes slightly, Gold turned away, holding his clenched hand out over the water, letting drops of blood drip onto the motionless surface.

For a moment there was nothing, each of them all watching out over the pond for any signs of the small boat that would probably carry them to their doom. The smoke started slight, just hovering above the surface, but it soon thickened, spreading across the pond like wildfire before the boat began to emerge.

Killian didn't hesitate. He stepped into the pond without a second thought as to what he was walking into, his feet barely a centimeter in the water. The others followed, Snow and Charming first, then Robin, Regina and Henry shortly after with Gold following on reluctantly behind. As he made his way towards the boat, cool water splashing against the leather of his boots Killian had a single thought.

"Swan, I will find you. I will always bloody find you."


	2. Good News!!

**Good news, Readers.**

**I am currently working on a sequel to this story of the gang as they rescue Emma from the Underworld. I know a few people have asked for this so be sure to keep an eye out within the next month (Or two)**

**I've not started writing yet and the story is very much in the planning stages because I want to get to know the Underworld a bit better from the show and see what characters we'll be dealing with.**

**It might even be a multi-chapter story.**

**It's going to be titles 'One May Tolerate A World Of Demons' which is reference to my _favourite_ doctor who quote - One may tolerate a world of demons for the sake of an angel. Sadly that title will probably be too long. **

**But please, keep an eye out for it or follow me and get a notification. Until then, please read some of my other stuff and review/ favourite. I've got three more OUAT stories in the making, chapter one of one of them has gone up (The Princess Who Doesn't know she'd lost), a modern AU which will be called Almost Is Never Enough, and a final, enchanted forest drabble AU which will be called Dust To Dust.**

**Be sure to keep an eye out and I'd love to hear what you all think about the new series!**


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